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Updated on
September 03, 2008,
J.H.
asks from Hesperia, CA
on
August 04, 2008

Leg Caught in Crib Bars...

My son has now done this twice. He'll wake up screaming. I'll run in and he's got his leg caught in the bars. Right above the knee. Which makes it a bit tough for me to get out. I am able too... but I am fearful he's really going to hurt his leg, possibly break it...
Any advice on how to keep this from happening? We have some bumpers, breathable bumpers that collapse very easily. In fact, he kept kicking them down and I had read that he could use them to try and climb out, so we removed them. Should I put them back in? Knowing that they collapse really easily and he really can't use them to climb out? Also, that he will probably squish them down anyway and so they may not help? But maybe they will?
We have the Kolcraft 3-1 bed. Purchased from Walmart. I really didn't think that he'd get his limbs stuck! I'm pretty frightened now, every time I put him in, that he's going to get stuck and break a leg...

So What Happened?™

Okay ladies... thank you to everyone for your wonderful suggestions. I really wasn't sure the bumper idea would work, but since we had one and that seemed the easiest and most cost affective choice, we tried that first. Wouldn't you know it.... he has only caught his foot in it up high, but only once! It's been weeks and I am sleeping much better now knowing he's not getting his little legs caught any longer!!! It's a breathable bumper. I have it weaved in and out of the bars to add a little strength to it, but not enough for him to climb out. He used to just push it down with his legs (of course he wasn't getting them caught back then) so we had removed it because it seemed to be pointless. Anyway... it's working now!!! Thank you ladies!!

Featured Answers

M.C.
answers from Honolulu
on
August 05, 2008

This can be a potentially very dangerous situation. If you are not ready to move him to a big boy bed yet, I would get a pack n play and use that for his bed. It has mesh sides so he can't get stuck. A friend of mine had a son who did this, and he actually did break his leg. An alternative to either big boy bed or pack n play is to just put a crib mattress on the floor and that is his bed. I did this with my little girl and after rolling around the room for about 2 weeks, she eventually stayed on it. Good luck

I know most people said to put the bumper back in and if you do that great - I hope it works! If you are against that, I know there is a netting that goes on cribs to prevent legs and arms from going outside the slats. It is a mesh like the pack and play and goes where the bumper goes therefore eliminating the suffocation risk they talk about with bumpers. Good luck!

Hi J.,
think about changing him to a low bed with a guard rail or putting the bumpers back in and lowing the side of the crib so he can climb out. He will learn to stay in the bed/crib and safely climb out at his age. My middle son needed the rail lowered even sooner because he kept trying to throw his leg over the top and get out and I was afraid he would fall. I never had problems with them staying in for naps or at bedtime. No need to prolong the crib.
H.

More Answers

T.M.
answers from Los Angeles
on
August 05, 2008

go on line at wal mart and the manufactor see if there is a recall on the crib there might be and you did not know about it, then contact the manufactor let them know this is happening, if people dont report the problems they wont know when to recall a crib, also call walmart tell them about it , ask them if you can bring back the crib, I am sure they will say yes. Kids safty first.

My daughter was doing this on purpose. So here is what finally worked. I took her bumper and "laced" it very tight through her crib bars. I placed it about 2 inches below the matress line so she could not get her feet under it. I pulled it VERY tight and then took a second bumper and laced it through the opposite pattern and overlayed it about 2 inches over the first.

This worked and now after 6 months I was able to remove the upper bumper but still kept the other one in place.

This can be a potentially very dangerous situation. If you are not ready to move him to a big boy bed yet, I would get a pack n play and use that for his bed. It has mesh sides so he can't get stuck. A friend of mine had a son who did this, and he actually did break his leg. An alternative to either big boy bed or pack n play is to just put a crib mattress on the floor and that is his bed. I did this with my little girl and after rolling around the room for about 2 weeks, she eventually stayed on it. Good luck

I had this trouble with one of my boys. I went to JoAnn's Fabric and got some of the polyester netting mesh that sports jersey's are made out of. I then weaved it in and out of the bars and secured it at the top and the bottom of the bed rail with some soft ribbon - I tied the netting to each section at the top and bottom - making sure it was very tight. The fabric covered the entire length and width of the bars. We then just used the baby monitor and listened closely when he woke up and made sure that we got him out - he did try to climb but was never successful. Good Luck!
J.
Giggle Moon Photographyhttp://www.gigglemoonphotography.com

My suggestion to you would be to put the bumpers back in. My sister suggested to me to get the breathable bumpers but I never did. I haven't (thus far) had problems with the padded bumpers because she old enough to turn her head away from them if she needs to plus she likes being in the middle of the crib. I have them tied on really snuggly so when she kicks at them it's difficult to push them down. It's even difficult for me to move them when I have to change the crib sheet. Additionally, I'd let the manufacturer know about your issue and see if there is a recall on your crib; you may be able to get a different crib if there is. As far as your son climbing out, I understand your concern and since I'm not there yet (first time mom) it's hard for me to give you advice. I can only say if he does try to climb out using the bumper change the setting of the base to its lowest setting. Also, if the bumper is easily collapsable his weight will probably push the bumper far enough down that he can't use it to climb out.

My Daughter is 18 months and she does this about 5 times a week. We have a $400 3 in 1 crib from sears and I even checked if there was a recall on it and there wasn't. My daughters problem was I was that she is so tiny and skinny her legs got stuck. My son used the same crib and never had any issues. He was much chunkier and didn't have that issue. It is very frightening when this happens and you can barely get the leg out. My daughter had both legs caught the other night and then her calf was wedged in another bar. I decided to set up a toddler bed for her that my son used instead. I'm tired of waking up 10 times a night to check on her to see if she's stuck. Your son might be a little too young for a toddler bed, but you could try it.

If your son is not a climber when he plays, then I would borrow a friend's stiff bumpers just to see what happens. If he can still get his leg stuck through the crib, you have 2 options. One, realize he eventually will be too big to do it and just deal with the periodic "getting stuck". I doubt he can break his leg, and it surely hasn't hurt enough yet to stop him from doing it. Option number two is to move him to a big boy bed like what has been mentioned. You can either use the toddler mattress he's on now or you can immediately use a twin (give him more room to roll around). I know he sounds young, but the friends I've had who have done it say it's wonderful to do before they walk. Then they never know any different and get out of bed less.

All my kids did that. I have 3. they only do it a few times. I have never heard of a baby actually hurting themselves seriously, but, I guess they could. All I can say is they stop before 18 months. I do not know why.

That sounds just too scarey to me. They say the slats should be no more than two inches apart. I would just get rid of the crib, its not worth your son getting injured.
Also I would let Kolcraft know, they may have reports of this happening to other babies as well, maybe it needs to be recalled.
Hope it all works out.

I know most people said to put the bumper back in and if you do that great - I hope it works! If you are against that, I know there is a netting that goes on cribs to prevent legs and arms from going outside the slats. It is a mesh like the pack and play and goes where the bumper goes therefore eliminating the suffocation risk they talk about with bumpers. Good luck!

Hi J.
My son did this once and I was freaked out about it too. Luckily he didn't do it again. I think if you put the bumper back in he will be fine. I also think that if your son is going to try to get out of his crib he'll find a way regardless if there's a bumper. My friends boy climbed out with out a bumper so she had to get one of those tents that go across the top of the crib. My son is 21 months and has never tried to climb out (that I know of). Anyway, I would put the bumper back in and hope he keeps his little legs inside.

It's probably time for him to go in the toddler bed portion of the 3-in-one. He probably will climb if you put anything knee high to prevent him from trying to climb. They do have nets that go around the entire crib, even the top-so they cannot climb out. You could try that and see if it's tight enough around the sides to prevent him from slipping his leg through.

My daughter had this happen too. I threaded the bumper through the slats of the crib and didn't have a problem with my monkey ever climbing out. The bumper wasn't very rigid so it would squish down if she stepped on it. But it would still be high enough so that her arms & legs didn't fall through the slats when she was sleeping.

My daughter does this sometimes too. I wouldn't worry about it. Eventually they learn not to get their foot caught. In fact, my older son did this too.

My daughter is 15 months and we removed the bumper when she turned 1 when she was able to pull herself up to a standing position in the crib.

We removed the bumper at 8 months with my son when he was able to stand up in the crib.

After about a month or so, both my kids figured out not to put their feet in between the bars and figured out how to get unstuck on their own. It's been at least a few weeks since I have had to help my daughter get her legs out.

Babies bones are pretty flexible and pliable so them getting broken while in the crib is pretty rare, I think. And you breaking their bones while trying to get them out of the crib is pretty unlikely, but I know your worry. I felt the same way each time my kids got their legs caught too.

If your son is not standing up in the crib on his own, I would put the bumper back in for your peace of mind. But if he is standing on his own, I would leave it out and trust that he will learn to not get his legs caught.

Hi J., the exact same thing happened to my son when he was between 15 and 18 months old, when i went in there it scared me cause his leg was stuck right about the knee, and he was screaming too, it looked liked he stuck his leg through the bars, and then rolled over, so I was scared of breaking his leg to get him out, anyway i figured it out, That very day I took the crib down, I layed the crib mattress on the floor, lined all od his stuffed animals around it, and that is how he slept until he went into a twin bed. J.

That has happened with both my children, when they were babies and toddlers, in their crib. But after that happening twice, they didn't do that again.

It is frightening... but I don't know of a way to "stop" it from happening. Our crib has bumpers in it... I leave them in, but that is just me. You could try removing yours... but again, I don't think the bumpers are the cause. It's just that they are doing things in the crib, playing and moving around... my son likes to put his legs up on the railings and "lounge" around in his crib that way... but he now knows that his legs can get stuck... so he's more careful now.

That crib slats spacing are according to regulations..but with young children, their limbs can get stuck, yes.

Sorry I don't have an answer for you per say.. .but just wanted to share that that has happened to us as well.

Hi Jen. Im sorry to tell you that I dont think there is anyway to really fix the problem. I have twin boys and I have one that gets occasionally caught in his crib bars and one that doesnt ever get caught in them (they are in separate cribs, but they are the same crib). The bumpers didn't help...my one son would pick his legs up past the bumpers and smash them down and also get his leg in the bars. You could try placing him to where maybe he wont roll into the bars when he goes to sleep. Like if you notice when you put him down he rolls over to his right and goes to sleep...mayby put him further to the left so when he gets comfortable hes not so close to the bars. I think he will eventually figure it out. Good Luck. It took mine about a month until he figured out that he probably should put his legs in there.

I just dealt with this with my 20 month old son. I too, took out the bumper because I thought he might use it to get out of the crib, and he was already walking all over it anyway. He moves around a lot when he sleeps, and plays for awhile when he is falling asleep, so he also got his leg stuck-twice. I don't know if it really is more dangerous to not have a bumper, or if the accidents were because he was just used to the bumper being there, but I ended up putting it back on and it hasn't happened again.

Pack N Play is a great idea. Do you put the sides of the crib up and down? If you leave them up all the time maybe you can put a stiff barrier on the outside of the bars, like something wooden or plastic, so he can't get his legs all the way out of the bars.

My little guy was sticking his leg through to crib to try to reach the foot of my bed to climb out. I got the heaviest gauge plexiglass and carefully drilled holes in it and attached it to the outside of the crib with zip ties. It worked really well. He is now in his toddler bed so it is no longer needed, but it was a huge help. Good luck!

my son has done this twice too. Not as high up as yours, but he screams nonetheless. I had taken off his bumper for the same reason you did, but ended up putting it back on. It has helped a little I suppose. It is hard to know if he would have been doing it more if the bumper weren't there. Like you mentioned, he just squishes it down and steps on it so it doesn't make the crib any easier to get out of. Maybe if your son is at an age where you can give him some kind of word to say if it happens so you know his crying is from that and you are able to get to him before he panics and starts tugging?? Both times it happened to me I immediately recognized the cry as not his normal cry so I caught it before he had started tugging at his leg.

It is a little silly to keep the bars exposed if you are having this issue. I think your son is old enough to have real bumpers if you aren't sure about the breathable ones. Since they are cloth, they also will collapse easily, but my son doesn't have any problems getting his leg stuck. (but he does play with the strings).

i know how you feel and i believe i have the same crib to. my daughter does it time to time and i just remove her leg (which also gets stuck above the knee) calm her down and put her back to bed. i havent used bumpers since she started pulling up. i dont think that his leg will get broken but he may be left with marks from where the bars are. good luck!

Hi J.,
think about changing him to a low bed with a guard rail or putting the bumpers back in and lowing the side of the crib so he can climb out. He will learn to stay in the bed/crib and safely climb out at his age. My middle son needed the rail lowered even sooner because he kept trying to throw his leg over the top and get out and I was afraid he would fall. I never had problems with them staying in for naps or at bedtime. No need to prolong the crib.
H.

My 6.5 month old did this twice a few months back and it scared me to death! Her leg was wedged just as far as you mentioned and I had a hard time getting it out too. I was too scared she'd end up breaking her leg while trying to free herself (she is very strong) so I put the bumper pad in. It ties in several spots around the crib. I have had no problems since. I was a little worried at first because of all the SIDS scares, but I have a video monitor that allows me to see if she has her face against the bumper.

I feel more at peace knowing she's not going to get a limb stuck this way. I hope this helps!

My son (8.5 mos) is doing this too, because he flips onto his tummy but has not learned how to flip back. (He does this only during the day, when he is incensed that someone of his advanced age should have to suffer the indignity of a nap.)

I tried putting him in a sleepy sack, but he flips anyway and then moves down the crib towards the bars at the foot.

I will try some bumpers, but would appreciate any thoughts on how to teach him either not to flip in the first place or to flip onto his back!